snap shooting
by tasteslikemiso
Summary: Ishida is good at solving puzzles, not reading people. Ishida/Tatsuki. A conversation beginning with 'no'.


**Notes: **For **springkink** prompt: Bleach, Ishida/Tatsuki: denial and first kiss – She's as crude as Ichigo.

* * *

Ishida is good at solving puzzles, not reading people. Kurosaki is busy, so he walks her home instead. She doesn't snap at him for it, and he doesn't ask why. She kicks at the ground awkwardly, shoulders low and eyes averted. Arisawa was usually so straightforward about her feelings, Ishida wasn't used to asking after them. Now he wishes he had a bit more practice.

She's thinking about everything. A little about Ichigo and his penchant for keeping secrets, the strange aura of strength bubbling forth that she hadn't felt in so long. About Ishida, a guy she barely knows and would likely never speak to had they not shared the same best friends. He's quiet, but she isn't going to be.

"Know what's up with Ichigo lately?" She asks almost casually, almost as if Kurosaki hadn't been the touchy subject on both of their minds the whole walk.

"No." He doesn't really, and the conversation could end there. But she presses on.

"What about those guys back there, does that have something to do with it?"

"Them? They're nothing of importance. But it's just like Kurosaki to expect someone else to clean up his mess." He pushes up his glasses.

"Yeah, I didn't know you could kick ass!" Ishida allows himself to believe her tone is more impressed than incredulous, and she quickly corrects herself. "Well, I've seen you run around town shooting shit before but hand-to-hand is a whole different game."

"You think 'shooting shit', that is, killing Hollows - is easier than taking down a couple of overfed yakuza?" He senses a challenge.

"Oh, come on. You know I don't mean it like that. It's just different, that's all. Hey, let's stop by the dojo on the way home, I want to see what you got."

Ishida objects to this idea. Dojo tend to be smelly, sweaty, and filled with people in a similarly unhygienic condition. Not to mention that the idea of wearing a karate gi does not mesh well with his highly refined personal style.

"I'm not going to fight you, Arisawa." He knows that he'd like to. She puts him on edge, which is an exhilarating and slightly terrifying feeling for someone so used to being calm and in control. Even though she acts so straightforward, it can be hard to tell what she's really thinking.

"Not even if I hit you first?" She pretends to be offended. It would be cute, except that there isn't anything 'cute' about her. Her hair sticks out in all directions, even now that it's long. She doesn't dress up or daydream, gossip or flirt. Well, maybe she could flirt a little.

He smirks. "Not even then."

So she starts hitting him playfully, and when pokes threaten to become tickles, he catches her arm mid-strike. She looks up at him, laughter fading, but doesn't pull her hand away. He releases his grip, surprised by the feeling of her fingers brushing the inside of his wrist. She fingers the chain and then the cross, looking awestruck and slightly envious.

"Do you think...that I could ever learn? To fight hollows?" She tries not to sound hopeful, and fails miserably.

"Probably not." He wants to lie, but she doesn't deserve it. He tries to soften it anyway. "But not many humans can."

She laughs. "You know making it sound difficult only makes me want it more."

"I'm serious. You could get hurt." Remember Kurosaki, he wants to say, and hopes he doesn't have to.

"Yeah, I know. Hey, at least you're honest. I still can't mention Hollows, shinigami or any of that shit to Ichigo without him going all quiet and wallowing in self-pity."

"Sensitive, aren't you?"

"Yeah and you're nice. Look, the kid lied to me for almost a year about what he really did on the weekends. Now I know the truth and he still won't talk about it? So much for best friends. Sometimes it's impossible not to be bitter."

Her eyes are downcast again, and without thinking about the possible repercussions of his actions, he lifts her chin. He takes a deep breath, searching for the right words.

"Kurosaki is an idiot," he says finally.

And she kisses him.


End file.
